Milk in the veins puts gold in the bank

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MiIking it ... judges in action at the Royal Cheese and Dairy Produce Show at the Sydney Showground yesterday.Photo: Peter Rae

As the great, great grandson of a man transported to Australia
for stealing cheese, Neil Willman prides himself on being able to
pick a good brie and camembert.

Yesterday he was happy to declare that quite a bit of what he
had tasted at the Sydney Showground was "unctuous".

After a few lean years for the Australian dairy industry, gold
and silver medals were getting a healthy workout among a record
field of entries on day one of the Royal Sydney Cheese and Dairy
Produce Show.

Mr Willman, the show's chief judge, is a cheese expert from the
University of Melbourne who grew up on a dairy farm. "I've had milk
running through my veins from the time I could walk," he said.

Now in his second year as chief judge, he said that camembert
and brie cheesemakers were listening to what judges want.

Of about 30 entries in the white mould category, three won gold
and a dozen silver.

"They have really lifted their game," Mr Willman said.

"They have developed more flavour. The bodies are softer. The
body is delivering the flavour to the palate." In industry
parlance, these are cheeses that are "unctuous".

While the Royal Easter Show proper doesn't open until March 18,
cheeses were judged yesterday, milk has its turn today and ice
cream will be judged tomorrow.

This year there are nearly 900 entries in dairy's 121 classes
ranging from vintage cheddar to novelty chocolate - up 26 per cent
on two years ago.

Peter Howard, chairman of the Royal Agricultural Society's dairy
produce committee, said the record entries were not only due to
improved conditions in the dairy industry but to the high quality
of judging at the show.